Color
As with the design tools of event décor, color is the most noticeable and strongest quality of light. Indeed, all light is colored, and white light is simply a mixture of all visible wavelengths (colors) between infrared and ultraviolet radiation on the electromagnetic spectrum. One of the keys to good lighting design is a thorough understanding of color. We begin with some definitions.
Hue is the pure form of a color with no white, black, or grey added. Tint is the mixture of a hue with white. Shade is the mixture of a hue with black. Tone is the mixture of a hue with black and white (grey). It is sometimes also called value. Saturation refers to the amount of hue in a color mixture. For example, a pure red color (like fire-engine red) would be said to have a high saturation of red. Figure 1 below illustrates these relationships in a triangular form.
As with the design tools of event décor, color is the most noticeable and strongest quality of light. Indeed, all light is colored, and white light is simply a mixture of all visible wavelengths (colors) between infrared and ultraviolet radiation on the electromagnetic spectrum. One of the keys to good lighting design is a thorough understanding of color. We begin with some definitions.
Hue is the pure form of a color with no white, black, or grey added. Tint is the mixture of a hue with white. Shade is the mixture of a hue with black. Tone is the mixture of a hue with black and white (grey). It is sometimes also called value. Saturation refers to the amount of hue in a color mixture. For example, a pure red color (like fire-engine red) would be said to have a high saturation of red. Figure 1 below illustrates these relationships in a triangular form.
Figure 1: Tints, Tones, and Shades (Courtesy Gillette, 2000 - Redrawn by author)
In the world of lighting, the color wheel takes on a slightly different appearance from the color wheel associated with décor (which uses pigments). For light, the primary colors are red, blue, and green. The secondary colors are yellow (mixture of red and green), cyan (mixture of green and blue), and magenta (mixture of red and blue). Figure 2 illustrates a lighting color wheel (also called a visual or RGB color wheel).
Figure 2: Lighting Color Wheel
The two differing color wheels, the one for pigment and the one for light, are often confusing since they do not make logical sense when mixing colors. Technically, as pointed out by Fitt and Thornley (2002), “the lessons learned from mixing the colors of paint are somewhat different to those for mixing the colors of light. It has to be realized that light is the source of all color, but pigments in paint (or in dyed fabrics – author) are simply reflections or absorbers of parts of the light that illuminates them If a beam of red light and a beam of green light are superimposed the result is yellow. On the other hand, if we mix red and green paint, we get rather a nasty looking ‘brown black’ color. When using light, all spectral colors can be created by adding various component parts of red, green, and blue light and the system used is called ‘addition,’ ultimately creating white. Pigments derive their colors by subtracting parts of the spectrum, therefore the system with pigments is called ‘subtraction’ and ultimately creates black.”
For special events, the LD is frequently called upon to not only light stage performances, but also decorative elements. These are particularly sensitive to the interaction between the hues of light and pigment hues, since most décor is pigment-based (e.g. fabrics, painted surfaces, costumes). Table 1 illustrates the interaction between the two types of color, and can serve as a guide for what a decorative element or person looks like when subjected to a certain color of light.
Color of Pigment | Color of Light | |||||||
Violet | Blue | Blue-Green | Green | Yellow | Orange | Red | Purple | |
Violet | Deep violet | Dark violet | Dark violet | Violet | Dark brown | Dark brown | Dark gray | Dark violet |
Blue | Light blue | Deep blue | Light bluish gray | Light blue | Dark bluish gray | Black | Gray | Blue |
Blue-Green | Dark blue | Very dark blue | Dark bluish gray | Dark green | Greenish blue | Dark greenish brown | Black | Dark blue |
Green | Bluish brown | Light olive green | Light greenish gray | Intense green | Bright green | Dark green | Dark gray | Dark greenish brown |
Yellow | Scarlet | Greenish yellow | Greenish yellow | Greenish yellow | Intense yellow | Yellow orange | Red | Orange |
Orange | Scarlet | Light brown | Light brown | Light brown | Orange | Intense orange | Intense orange red | Scarlet |
Red | Scarlet | Purplish black | Dark maroon | Maroon | Bright red | Orange red | Intense red | Red |
Purple | Reddish purple | Dark violet | Maroon | Purplish violet | Light brown | Maroon | Reddish brown | Deep purple |
Table 1: Interaction of Colored Light with Colored Pigment (Courtesy Fuchs, 1929)
To add to the confusion, additive and subtractive color mixing are also found in the lighting world alone. Additive color mixing refers to the combining of two or more colors to form a new color. As illustrated in Figure 3, the combining of red and blue light sources, for example, will produce a new color, magenta. Subtractive color mixing refers to the filtering of light. When light passes through a single colored gel or filter, only the wavelength corresponding to the color of the filter will pass through it. Figure 4 illustrates this concept.
Figure 3: Additive Color Mixing in Light (Courtesy Gillette, 2000 – Redrawn by author)
Figure 4: Subtractive Color Mixing in Light (Courtesy Gillette, 2000 – Redrawn by author)
The last important concept of color in lighting design is the meaning of color. It is a well-known fact that every color has certain emotions attached to it. It is these emotions that the LD tries to enhance in order to make his design more effective.
My final post on lighting design will discuss direction and movement.
References:
My final post on lighting design will discuss direction and movement.
References:
- Fitt, Brian, and Joe Thornley. (2002). Lighting Technology: A Guide for Television, Film and Theater, Second Edition. Woburn, MA: Focal Press.
- Fuchs, Theodore. (1929). Stage Lighting. Little, Brown, and Company. Retrieved January 31, 2006 from www.rosco.com/us/technotes/filters/technote_1.asp#4.
- Gillette, J. Michael. (2000). Theatrical Design and Production: An Introduction to Scene Design and Construction, Lighting, Sound, Costume, and Makeup, Fourth Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
